1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle washing apparatus having a drive shaft for a rotatable brush which contains a yieldable coupling.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Various overhead mounted brushes for washing the front, sides and rear of vehicles being washed are known in the art. In order to prevent damage to vehicles being washed and in order to obtain efficient washing of vehicles, it is desirable to mount these overhead brushes in such a way that when the brushes contact the car, the brushes swing and/or slide out of the path of the car. It is also desirable to mount these brushes in such a manner that the brush can bend or flex relative to the drive shaft thereof. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,881,208; 4,021,877 and 4,024,598 to Miner disclose vehicle washing brushes of this general type. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,198,722; 4,270,958; 4,332,625 and 4,299,003 to Ennis disclose additional vehicle washing brushes for accomplishing the above-mentioned result. U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,862 to Ennis et al discloses similar vehicle washing brushes.
One of the problems associated with the car wash apparatus disclosed in the above-described Ennis and Ennis et al patents is that when the brushes contact a vehicle moving relative thereto, the brushes swing away from the vehicle and bounce out of the path of the car without properly washing the car. The present invention is therefore directed to solving this and other problems which will be discussed further hereinbelow which are associated with prior vehicle washing apparatus.